A railway switch (also known as a turnout or a set of points) is a mechanical assembly that permits railway trains to be guided from one track to another at a railway junction. A typical switch includes a pair of linked tapering rails called switch rails (also known as points or point blades) that lie between a pair of diverging outer rails called stock rails. In operation, the points can be moved laterally between a first position and a second position to direct a train towards or away from either a first path, defined by the left stock rail, or a second path, defined by the right stock rail.